Page 22 - 2018SpringSpectrum

Canadian Chamber of Commerce

CETA: EU Export Opportunities bility chapter. CETA includes provisions that cover length
On March 14th, the Canadian Chamber of Commerce part- of stay and entry conditions for intra-company transfer-
nered with the Trade Commissioner Service, as well as the ees, as well as those providing services on a contractual
Canada-Europe Roundtable for Business, to host a seminar to basis.
promote export opportunities stemming from the Canada-EU That’s just a sampling of what’s on offer.
trade deal, otherwise more affectionately known as the Com-
prehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA). However, CETA is only the starting point. Once you get past
the tariffs and other headline items, companies will still need
The CETA has been a long time in the making. Negotiations to be mindful of domestic regulatory requirements such as
started in 2009 and concluded in 2014. The pact was signed product safety standards. CETA creates a number of special-
in October 2016, and the majority of it came into “provisional ized bodies that will get into the technical details of various
application” on September 21st, 2017. Although nearly all of sectoral issues, and there is an opportunity for Canadian busi-
the agreement has entered into force, it cannot be considered nesses to shape the agenda of these groups. By getting in ear-
fully ratified until all parliaments across the EU have passed it. ly, Canadian companies can advocate to ensure that non-tariff
barriers in their sector are more likely to be addressed.
Despite the years of hard work by Canadian negotiators, trade
deals only deliver their potential if businesses take advantage Although the length of the CETA text can be daunting (it’s
of them. As businesses heard at this event, CETA presents a around 1,600 pages), the agreement presents opportunities
number of opportunities across many sectors of the economy. for SMEs and larger businesses. The Trade Commissioner Ser-
vice intends to work to ensure CETA delivers for businesses of
• 98% of tariffs were eliminated when CETA came into force. all sizes, but they are acutely aware of the challenges SMEs
A small portion are being phased out various periods up face, especially if they are first time exporters.
to seven years, and then there are a few products (such
as beef and pork) which will be subject tariff rate quotas. The Canadian Chamber looks forward to working with its local
• CETA also gives Canadian companies greater opportuni- and regional Chambers, association members, and corporate
ties to bid on European procurement contracts. members to ensure businesses have the best information on
• Canadian companies will have also an easier ability to how to make CETA work for them. We will continue to advocate
move talent where it is needed through CETA’s labour mo- that the Canadian government diversifies our market access

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22 www.cambridgechamber.com
Spring 2018